Book Review: "Perfectly Famous" by Emily Liebert

To me, there's nothing more disappointing than when a thriller with tremendous potential veers off course into utter soap opera melodrama. That's what happened with Emily Liebert's upcoming book, Perfectly Famous. I was on the edge of my seat for a while, then I started to suspect what I thought would happen, and then...darn it. But is a book that gives you a good ride almost the whole way still worth a read? I think so.

Ward DeFleur is a best-selling author and a household name. Her books have been made into movies and become instant hits. Her fans are eagerly anticipating her 15-stop book tour for her latest release, and although Ward is a little bit nervous, she's determined that nothing is going to go wrong, and the tour will be a surefire success.

And then, the night of her first book signing, something goes very wrong—her teenage daughter, Stevie, is found brutally beaten (she was supposed to be spending the night at a friend's house) and ultimately, succumbs to her injuries. Ward is devastated, unable to get past this tragedy, and retreats from the world, cutting off contact with her agent and publisher and everyone else.

Bree attended Ward's book signing the night Stevie was assaulted. Having a hard time dealing with the end of her marriage and her teenage daughter's increasingly hostile attitude, she broke down in tears at the signing and Ward comforted her. Now, as she tries to build a new life for herself, she begins writing for the local newspaper, and decides what she'd like to do is tell Ward's story.

The challenge is, Ward isn't interested in being found. But Bree is resourceful, almost obsessive in her desire to track Ward down. Even as people warn her that Ward may not want her to tell her story, or even try to locate her, Bree feels this is her chance to prove something to herself again. The deeper she digs, the more danger she puts herself in, because Stevie's killer is still out there...and doesn't want Bree in the way.

Liebert really ratchets up the tension through the start of the book. And although some tired subplots threaten to derail the suspense, the story is pretty fascinating and I couldn't put it down...until things started getting tied up and all I wanted was to put the book down. This is the first of Liebert's books I've read so I don't know if this is something that happens often in her books or if this is just a fluke, but I was really disappointed.

NetGalley and Gallery Books provided an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

Perfectly Famous publishes June 2.